Читать книгу The Last Daughter - Thomas Mahon - Страница 14

The pale man sped south on US 93 as the last vestiges of sunlight reflected a deep orange hue on the majestic Sheep Range to his left. He hadn’t passed another car for the last ten miles. Traffic was so exceptionally sparse, he wondered if he was still on an inhabited planet. He rubbed his chin and frowned. The sight of the blood, endless blood, clung to him. Like a dampness.

His cellular rang.

He felt the small microphone taped to his chest. “Good evening, sir. The timing of your call was nothing short of perfect. I assume you heard everything.”

“I did,” answered the even, refined voice.

“I’m on Ninety-Three, approximately one hour northeast of Vegas,” he said, realizing he was also being tracked by GPS. His client left very little to chance.

The calm, even voice responded, “I see you.” There was a pause. “He choose the femoral artery, did he?”

“Yes.”

“And you want to know why. You wonder about his fanatical devotion. You see, like me, he’s a romantic.” There was a short pause. “Now, then. Time grows short. We have a narrow window,” said the calm voice. “I need you back as quickly as possible.”

The pale man studied the rise and fall in the road ahead, then consulted his Rolex. “I should be in Orlando in six, seven hours, depending on delays.”

“That will be fine.”

The pale man exhaled and re-gripped the wheel. “There’s something that’s bothering me. Is there a chance Caitlin Prescott will recognize the suspicious email headers?”

“She already has.”

Really. “But the sergeant assured me—”

“Let’s just leave it at that for the time being.”

This certainly wasn’t the usual M.O. He shook his head. Nothing made sense anymore. He had one more question.

“When would you like the package delivered?”

The package. That sounded contrived. It wasn’t really a package, was it?

“I will see you in six hours.”

The call ended.

The pale man drove in deep thought for the next ten minutes. Eventually he lowered the window, and tossed out the cellular. He accelerated the Navigator, focusing on the pulsing glow of Las Vegas, in the night sky, several miles to the southwest.